To see the rulers of the small kingdoms which existed before the formation of England, Scotland or Wales, see:

Kings of the Britons

Mythical British Kings

Rulers of Wales

Kings of the Picts

Kings of Dál Riata

Kings of Strathclyde

Kings of the Isle of Man and the Isles

Kings of the Isle of Man

Kings of East Anglia

Kings of Essex

Kings of Kent

Kings of Sussex

Kings of Wessex

Kings of Mercia

Kings of Northumbria

High Kings of Ireland

Complications over title and style

James VI of Scotland and I of England, united the Crowns of England, Scotland and Ireland in a personal union, later merged into a single Kingdom of Great Britain by the Act of Union 1707.

Royal titles are complicated because in some cases names of kingdoms are used that did not officially come into existence until later, or came into existence earlier without immediate adoption of the royal title.

In 1328, on the death of the French king, Charles IV, Edward III (nephew of Charles IV) claimed the French throne. English monarchs, and subsequently British monarchs, then styled themselves King of France or Queen of France until the Act of Union 1800, which led to the creation of the United Kingdom in 1801. By then France had been a republic for ten years. (See English claims to the French throne.)

Since 1559 English monarchs, and subsequently British monarchs, have also had the title Supreme Governor of the Church of England.

Note that the numbering of English monarchs starts afresh after 1066 (although this affects only the Edwards).

All Scottish monarchs held the title King of Scots or Queen of Scots, with the exception of the last three: Mary II, William III and Anne I used the style "of Scotland" rather than "of Scots".

In October 1604, one year after James VI of Scotland had become King of England, he decreed that the Royal Title would use the term Great Brittaine to refer to the "one Imperiall Crowne" made up of England and Scotland . However using that title is problematic because the 'state' of Great Britain was not created until the Act of Union 1707. Nor was the united crown generally referred to as 'imperial'. To avoid confusion, historians in general thus refer to all monarchs up to 1707 as monarchs of England and Scotland. Thus James II of England was also James VII of Scotland; and William III of England was also William II of Scotland. Many English and British monarchs also claimed France as part of their official title, though this had no substance in reality. After the Union, the ordinal has been the English number (for "George", "Edward" and "Elizabeth") and, until recently, there was no formal rule (see List of regnal numerals of future British monarchs).

In different documents, the terms Kingdom of Great Britain and United Kingdom of Great Britain feature, even documents as official as the Act of Union 1707. Most historians presume the United was meant to be descriptive, indicating a union as a form of unity by marriage rather than coercion. For clarity and because the United is far more strongly associated with the later name United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland produced in the Act of Union 1800, the 1707 Kingdom is generally referred to as the Kingdom of Great Britain.

Similarly, though most of Ireland ceased to be part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland when it became the Irish Free State in 1922, neither the full name of the United Kingdom nor the royal title were changed until the Royal and Parliamentary Titles Act 1927. In this instance historians generally retrospectively date the coming into being of the modern United Kingdom to December 1922, even though in this case the formal change did not occur for another five years.

Monarchs

Succession to the many thrones often did not pass smoothly from parent to child; lack of heirs, civil wars, murders and invasions affected the inheritance in ways that a simple list does not show. The relationships that formed the basis for claims to throne are noted where we know them, and the dates of reign indicated.

The House of Balliol When Margaret died in 1290 there was no clear heir. King Edward I of England adjudged the claims of Robert Bruce, 5th Lord of Annandale and John Balliol in Balliol's favour.

John

1292– 1296

David I's great-great-great-grandson

The House of Bruce When John Balliol rebelled, the Wars of Scottish Independence commenced, during which Robert the Bruce became King.

Robert I

1306– 1329

David I's great-great-great-great-grandson

David II

1329– 1371

Robert I's son

The House of Balliol For a period of time, both Edward Balliol and David II claimed the throne.

Edward Balliol

1332– 1336

John Balliol's son

The House of Stuart Engaged to the Dauphin at age five, Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots was thus brought up in the French court where she became "Marie Stuart, Reine de l'Écosse," etc., to render the sound of 'Stewart' into French as accurately as possible. Mary kept the French spelling on her return to Scotland in 1560.

Monarchs of England, Scotland and Ireland In 1603, James VI of Scotland inherited the English throne upon the death of Elizabeth I in what is known as the Union of the Crowns. From then until 1707, England, Scotland and Ireland had shared monarchs.

The Period of Interregnum, ( Commonwealth and Protectorate) England had no king from 1649 to 1660, but was a Republic until 1653. Oliver Cromwell then dissolved Parliament and ruled alone as Lord Protector to his death.

The House of Hanover Under the Act of Settlement 1701, the English (thus, the successor British) throne could only be held by a Protestant. Sophia of Hanover, the nearest such relative, thus became statutorily designated as the next heir. She died shortly before Anne, and her place was taken by her son, who thus founded the House of Hanover (aka Guelph and Brunswick).

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